November 19, 2015

Income Influx: Boost Your Profits Through Telecommunications

Whether you manage student housing or multi-residential buildings, creating auxiliary revenue streams is critical. Apartment firms and REITs must actively mine relationships with third parties that can provide products and services to their residents.

From telephone, Internet and cable companies, to cellphone companies looking for antenna space, the telecom sector offers a prime way to boost revenues. How so?

Referral fees offer a low-risk, high-reward proposition. When you direct residents to a third-party firm, you benefit from any new business it brings the telecom company, without having to make any investment yourself. The provider enjoys additional revenue, and your residents reap the rewards of a reliable service.

To sweeten the deal, referral fees aren’t the only fiscal advantage to partnering with a telecom company.

It’s no secret that happy renters are much more likely to stick around. By offering cable and Internet services through your building, you’ll make things more comfortable and convenient for residents. This leads to higher resident retention and greater monthly profitability, reducing turnover and giving your bottom line an even greater boost.

Maximize Communications: Spread the Word

Once you have a third-party arrangement in place, the key is to ensure maximum sign-ups. The best time to target residents is during the application process.

By using an online application, you can direct people to easily explore—and purchase—products and services. Create fields for auxiliary income items like cable, Internet and insurance with short enticing descriptions, so your new tenants can see the value and easily indicate which services they would like. This will streamline everything for the new renter, leading to the highest adoption rates, and higher auxiliary revenue, for you and your property management firm.

You should also make use of a tenant portal to reach existing residents. Let them know about any cable or Internet deals the building provides, and encourage them to take advantage of your offer.

The ability to generate auxiliary, passive income for each property is not only lucrative, but can also be viewed through the lens of customer service. The ability to offer both prospective renters and existing residents bundles and deals on a variety of services (telecommunication and otherwise) creates a very strong image of a dynamic, desirable and convenient building. It also goes a long way in attracting new renters and increasing resident satisfaction with the depth and breadth of amenities and offerings.

To learn more about how Property Vista’s online application and tenant portal can help you bring in auxiliary revenue through telecommunications, sign up for your free account todayor give us a call.

Web based and simple-to-use, PropertyVista offers a suite of online tools designed for landlords and property managers who understand the importance of reducing vacancies, cutting risk and improving cash-flow through strong tenant relations.